Yah! This post is fun for us to share as it’s not at all wedding related and totally personal. So if you’re interested in travel, adventure, and stories, keep reading, otherwise, stay tuned for our next beautiful couple in April!
Back in January, it dawned on Patrick and I that we would be celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary in November, with a NEWBORN, and 2 rowdy little boys. Going away right after our busy season wouldn’t be feasible. We knew we should look into a babymoon/anniversary option and we were running out of time since so many airlines and cruiselines don’t let you said past a certain number of weeks pregnant. So we got right to it, started researching, reached out to our amazing travel agent Lisa, and started planning. We ended up booking a 7 day cruise to the ABC islands plus a couple more out of Puerto Rico! Warm weather, here we come! I have to share some back story… the last time Patrick and I cruised, was in March 2020 with carnival and we were one of the last ships to come back to the US as the pandemic was hitting. So we were pumped to get back on a ship 3 years later!
At the end of February, we flew down the same day we were boarding which some would say is risky, but we love a good adventure. Upon landing in San Juan, we met a shuttle and a lot of other cruisers and got taken to The Epic, a Norwegian Cruise Line Ship… it holds over 4,000 passenger guests and 1,500 crew. Unreal and huge, the biggest ship we’ve been on ever.
The first day was a boat day, we left San Juan for Aruba in the evening and then all of Monday was a Sea Day. We went and heard live music, danced on the pool deck, and just got to know the ship. Food was good all week!
Aruba was awesome. We decided to do a Day Pass through the Rui Palace Resort, an all-inclusive resort in Aruba. It was BEAUTIFUL! Water was incredible, food was good, but the wind was horrible! We were told Aruba is windy all year except the Fall. We met a really cute honeymoon couple and spent most our time swimming, walking around the resort, exploring, eating, and drinking amazing frozen mocktails!
I really wanted maternity photos in Aruba, or on an island, so Patrick made it happen! I loved how they turned out!
The next day we hit Bonaire, the “B” of the ABC islands. We didn’t have an excursion planned so we slept in, got food, and then decided… Let’s Go! We got off the boat and literally jumped into the port at a public area. We kinda regret not doing an excursion here because the water was the prettiest of all the locations/islands we went to. Summary of Bonaire… lizards, crabs, incredible water, and our sleep in day!
Yah for Curacao. So we wanted to book the excursion of swimming with turtles but long story short, we booked the trip too late and there weren’t any businesses with availabilty to take us too the locations without it being sooo expensive… private charter not happening. So we booked another Sail and Snorkel excursion and it ended up being awesome. Fun fact, we never book through the cruise line. We figure out the local businesses, reach out directly to them, give them dates, and times and it’s 1) much less and 2) more fun… have to take taxis! This company offered Open Air Bus rides and there were other cruisers on this excursion so we all knew we’d get back in time to get back on the boat. Here’s the excursion we did!
Erie Tours took us to a marina where we got on the yacht and then we toured Curacao, saw a gorgeous Sandals Resort, some incredible homes, and then headed out to see to 2 locations where we snorkeled at a sunken boat and near/under an oil rig.
When we got back to port, we decided to head by foot to find the Lock Hearts. We intentionally took a lock with us, wrote all over it and locked it onto the monument! There’s only a few of these in the world!
We ran back to the ship as we cut it close, but we had a blast in Curacao! Later that night, we decided to go to the Newlywed Game, auditioned, got to be 1 of 3 contestant couples, and ended up winning the Newlywed Game! It was pretty awesome!
Alrighty, Saint Lucia. I actually wasn’t impressed. Maybe it was because we booked a day pass at a resort that literally didn’t have what we had hoped for. We had hoped to swim and snorkel on our own, it was way to murky and cloudy… and then the resorts water sports closed early the day we were there AND then I wasn’t allowed to use anything at the water park because of being pregnant… which was crazy, but I understand. BUT food and drink at the resort was good! Let’s keep going!
That night, we celebrated our 10 years at a Brazilian Steakhouse on the ship and it was SOO good. I ate 5 filet mignon… yep, and I brought a 10 year candle which we can’t light on a boat. We felt and looked awesome and walked around the boat, got some yummy drinks and enjoyed ourselves soo much!
OKay!! So our last full day and our last port, ST KITTS!
We didn’t have anything planned and it ended up being one of our favorites. We slept in, went to breakfast, made love, and ate again. Then we decided, let’s go find adventure. We took a local taxi to a local beach. We got dropped off with the promise we would get picked up (he followed through!) and were greeted with monkeys on our shoulders. We found another family on our ship so we met them, they let us keep some of our personal items and our towels with them, and we went swimming, walked the beach, and lounged. No agenda, just 3 hours of chill and downtime. We reminisced the trip, talked about the future, dreamed a little and laughed a lot. We got back on the ship yet again with just enough time. We showered and got ready to eat at an amazing Japanese Steakhouse. Dang did we eat our tickets worth in food this trip!
Over all, we had a really incredible time away. We loved being together, without kid and work distraction, without an agenda other than the one we created for ourselves, with each other.
Lesson to take away: As a married couple, intentional time is a must. If you don’t make time, it won’t happen. Whether it’s a trip, a night out, or just a few minutes to look deep into the eyes of the one you love and then smile and know that you’re in this amazing gift of LIFE together.
Patrick, I love you more than you know. I know you love me more than anything. There’s no denying that. As you said “I’m obsessed with you.” The feelings are mutual and I’m so glad to go into 2023, our 10th year, knowing we still feel like Newlyweds, but with better laughs, adventures, sex, and dreams. You’re my favorite, I love you!
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